Defense Cuts Mean UK Would Lose A New Falklands War, Veteran Claims

Britain would lose the Falkland Islands to Argentina if the South
American country invaded them, thanks to defense cuts, according
to a commander of the 1982 Falklands War.

Major-General Julian Thompson, who commanded the brigade of Royal
Marines and paratroops that helped to retake the islands, said it
was likely Argentina would attack the islands as budget cuts had
deprived the Royal Navy of an aircraft carrier to defend
Britain's South Atlantic territories.

“The Argentines have a marine brigade. They’ve got a parachute
brigade and some good special forces,” General Thompson told
The Times of
London. “All they’ve got to do is get those guys on to the
islands for long enough to destroy the [RAF] Typhoon jets and
that’s the end of it.”

The scrapping of the Harrier fleet plan means Britain will have
no aircraft carriers between 2011 and 2020, which is when the
Queen Elizabeth carrier will become operational, according to
The Daily Mail.

The Falklands is currently garrisoned by 1,300 troops, four
Typhoon Eurofighters, a warship and possibly a submarine,
according to the
Express.

Argentina has stepped up the pressure on Britain to resolve the
Falklands dispute, calling for a ban on British imports,
preventing cruise ships that had visited the Falklands from
docking at its ports,
among other things.

While a Ministry of Defence spokesman denied the presence of
"evidence of any current credible
threat,"
Brigadier Bill Aldridge, commander of British Forces in the
Falklands, expressed confidence in his ability to defend them. "I
am not expecting to hand them over to anybody and therefore put
us in a position where we would have to retake them,” he told
Express.